First Principles Thinking

Version 1.5.1. Free. Works with major AI agents. Source: github.com/diaryofamademan/skills

Episode 1

The video for this episode goes here when it publishes.

What it does

Most decisions get made by analogy: do what the competitor did, what the last job did, what the template says. This skill makes your agent slow down and rebuild the decision from what is actually true. It lists every assumption and where it came from, keeps only the claims that carry evidence, prices the raw inputs when money is involved, and rebuilds the option from the floor up.

Use it when:

  • A price looks high and nobody can explain why.
  • A plan feels trapped by how the industry does it.
  • Every option on the table looks like a small variation of the same thing.

What is inside:

  • The seven step procedure: name the problem, list assumptions, strip to truths, price the floor, rebuild, compare, decide.
  • The assumption table and reasoning trace formats, so every conclusion can be checked line by line.
  • Worked examples, including the rocket and battery cost decompositions.

Get the skill

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